White Light and Other Stories

A young man entrusted with his troubled uncle’s care cannot decide how to help the woman expecting his child. His sense of duty repeatedly gives way to avoidance, fantasy, and an unsettling night walk. In a much lighter story, a schoolgirl sets her alarm for five, only to find dreams more persuasive than her nightly resolutions.

Makino Shin’ichi brings a different kind of contest to A Sleepy Day. A young writer’s campaign against drowsiness entangles him in rough family games, awkward conversation with a childhood friend, a critic’s elaborate pronouncements, and an impromptu gramophone concert. Even simple plans acquire unexpected obstacles.

These three complete stories, first published between 1921 and 1923, reveal the comedy and discomfort of people performing feelings they do not fully understand. The edition preserves their unresolved endings, numbered sections, dream-song, and source quotation, with concise notes on historical references, names, and printed uncertainties. AI-assisted translation, prepared and edited by Valentin Sarić.